Critic Reviews

The 5-Star series has been around for a long time, and the game engine is solid as a rock because of it. I encountered no bugs during the review period, and gameplay was smooth and flowed well. The interface is incredibly easy to learn and use, no doubt due to the long evolutionary process it has endured. Pacific General is an excellent game which experienced wargamers and beginners can appreciate equally. It is easy to learn, fun to play, and employs a sophisticated AI that is challenging. Bottom Line: A game that wargame veterans can enjoy, and beginners can learn with little or no pain. Elegant interface, smooth gameplay, a wargame that does almost everything right.

This is an above-average game with exceptional configuration options. Very detailed and somewhat complicated, steps have been taken to make the product accessible to everyone. Although the graphics are not overly exciting, such bells and whistles are not normally expected from a wargame anyway. There isn’t much else that anyone could want in a wargame that Pacific General doesn’t have. But, if it’s a wargame with graphics that you are after, there is a demo of Panzer General II included with the product as well.

PACIFIC GENERAL is by no means perfect. Flaws in the AI make it too easy in some scenarios, although extensive Internet and email options should make multiplayer games considerably more viable than past GENERAL products. Still, even with the odd glitch, PACIFIC GENERAL is the first sequel to PANZER GENERAL that really takes advantage of the strengths of the basic game system. As such, it will make for hours of enjoyable gaming and should have no trouble retaining a place on your hard drive.

Pacific General is the last hurrah before SSI moves on to Panzer General II and a whole new series of wargames. It does exactly what it sets out to do - give us all of World War II in the Pacific - and then some. If the engine has some quirks and the graphics are beginning to look wan, then think of it like that tattered, dotty old uncle who still has some good tales to tell.